consolidate

verb

con·​sol·​i·​date kən-ˈsä-lə-ˌdāt 

consolidated; consolidating

transitive verb

1

: to join together into one whole : unite

consolidate several small school districts

2

: to make firm or secure : strengthen

consolidate their hold on first place

He consolidated his position as head of the political party.

3

: to form into a compact mass

The press consolidates the fibers into board.

intransitive verb

: to become consolidated

specifically : merge

The two companies consolidated.

consolidator

kən-ˈsä-lə-ˌdā-tər 

noun

Synonyms

• center
• centralize
• compact
• concenter
• concentrate
• polarize
• unify
• unite

Examples of consolidate in a Sentence

The two funds will consolidate into one.

The administration hopes that such measures will consolidate its position.

Rebel forces have consolidated their hold on the region.

Recent Examples on the Web

Google is consolidating its AI models, research, and ethics teams into the Google DeepMind division, run by Demis Hassabis. —Rachyl Jones, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024

The district held a series of community listening sessions over the past two weeks to talk about the possibility of consolidating seven middle schools. —Silas Allen, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Apr. 2024

Ohio and Montana are consolidating tax brackets and Georgia is adopting a flat tax. —Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 10 Apr. 2024

The social services arm of the Archdiocese of Louisville has opened a new headquarters on East Broadway that consolidates operations that were spread across the city. —Matthew Glowicki, The Courier-Journal, 10 Apr. 2024

The drugmakers notched a significant win in 2022, when another judge dismissed about 50,000 lawsuits making similar claims that had been consolidated in federal court in Florida. —CNN, 5 Apr. 2024

And in the other towns, active labor movements emerged and consolidated for the first time in the 1930s, in part aided directly by the Wagner Act. —TIME, 2 Apr. 2024

San Francisco Unified’s superintendent Matt Wayne announced a plan to consolidate schools earlier this month. —Molly Gibbs, The Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2024

While Cartoon Network Studios continues to exist, since the Warner Bros. Discovery merger in 2022, its production and development teams were consolidated with Warner Bros. Animation’s. —Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin consolidatus, past participle of consolidare to make solid, from com- + solidus solid

First Known Use

circa 1512, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

consolidate

verb

con·​sol·​i·​date kən-ˈsäl-ə-ˌdāt 

consolidated; consolidating

1

: to join together into one whole : unite

2

: to make firm or safe : strengthen

consolidate a beachhead

consolidation

kən-ˌsäl-ə-ˈdā-shən

noun

Legal Definition

consolidate

transitive verb

con·​sol·​i·​date kən-ˈsä-lə-ˌdāt 

consolidated; consolidating

: to join together into one whole: as

a

: to combine (two or more lawsuits or matters that involve a common question of law or fact) into one compare class action

Note: Consolidation of matters in the federal courts is governed by Rule 42 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Consolidated cases may become one single action with a single judgment, or may retain their individual identities although tried together. The court may also try one representative case and render a judgment binding on the other cases.

b

: to combine (two or more corporations) to form one new corporation compare merger

consolidation

kən-ˌsä-lə-ˈdā-shən 

noun